Souls
by Gogo Starship
Summary: Because at the end of the day, no matter what anyone might tell you, they care. They feel. They have souls. A look into the complexities of Vocal Adrenaline, the villains who never got a chance to tell their side.
1. Chapter 1

I know what you guys are thinking- I'm a very well-learned Legilimens- and I know, I'm on a roll. I just can't stop it, even if I wanted to- if I get a new idea, I have to post it. It's weird, but I love keeping St. Berry alive. It's so important! Boo for Finchel endgame! We must keep St. Berry going, even if it's only through FanFiction! Well, there won't be much St. Berry in this, mostly just mentions. I'll probably ignore Jesse's McKinley days, unless it's on the VA side. We know what happens.

**So, I was reading this story my friend wrote (she's a Finchel writer, and she asked me to check it out- she won't post it, and even though it's well-written, I'm not gonna complain about less Finchel) and she was completely bashing VA. Of course, I was like, dude, WTF are you showing me this? I'm a St. Berry shipper. She then told me she was trying to convert me and show me how evil VA and Jesse are. **

**UN. ACCEPTABLE! **

**So this was born. I hope you enjoy this look into the dynamic of Vocal Adrenaline. Starting in Jesse's sophomore year, his first year as lead, (he was just chorus in his freshman, in this). **

**Blah, overly-long AN finished. I don't own Glee. **

**ENJOY :D **

As Jesse pulled up to the sprawling campus of Carmel High, he let out a breath he had seemed to be holding in all summer. Yes, he had enjoyed his college tours in California, and he had especially enjoyed spending time with the gorgeous girls he had come across there, but he hadn't enjoyed the time away from the team. He had missed his team, and his home away from home, the Carmel auditorium. Not only was it the nicest high school auditorium in all of Ohio, it had been the main source of happiness in the past two years of his sixteen-year-old life.

He nodded to his uncle- who was the only one in town now that his parents had gone to Florida for the fall- and climbed out of the car. As embarrassing as it was, he had yet to get his driver's license. He had been too busy over the summer. But he had taken the classes online at night, and he was taking his test that Friday, so he would be driving in no time, and wouldn't have to depend on his uncle waving goodbye and embarrassing him further. He knew it was stupid, but damn, he was Jesse St. James. He was a badass. Badasses didn't hitch rides from their uncles, unless they were like Uncle Jesse from Full House, and had rode up on a motorcycle.

"St. James!" a voice called from the entrance of the school. Jesse whipped around and smiled slightly at Chris, the tall, twenty-one year old member that had been continuously failed to stay in Vocal Adrenaline. The guy was huge, and frankly scared the crap out of Jesse when they had first become acquainted. But the guy was cool, and knew how to make a mean grasshopper pie.

"Hey, Johnson!" he laughed, giving him a slap on the hand as Chris pulled him into a one-armed hug. "Glad to be back?"

"You know it. You know who they got to do my classes this year? Alexis Monroe. The girl is a frickin' genius. Honor roll, front runner for Valedictorian. I'm so set."

"Dang. Where do I find out about that, anyway?" Jesse frowned, swinging the door open to the auditorium, and after bypassing the lobby, inhaled the scent of dusty velvet chairs and freshly-polished linoleum floors. He smiled.

Various members were dotting the stage, smiling and laughing as they shared summer stories and compared tans and haircuts. The girls showed off their new styles and the boys were talking about their summer conquests.

"Real tall girl, mile-long legs, real gorgeous. I brought her back to the hotel that very night!" one senior laughed, obviously proud. Jesse smirked and walked over, easily sliding into the conversation.

"Did you at least stay to buy her breakfast?" he smirked. The boys roared with laughter.

"I never asked how she liked her eggs, St. James. The girl has legs, she can walk herself to a diner!" Adam laughed. He was tall but stringy, definitely one of the dancers of the group, with a wicked grin and endless charm, when needed. When with the team, though, he became about as charming as dead fish.

"Yeah, I would say you could walk her there, but your legs were probably already chasing fresh tail," he replied coolly. Adam just laughed.

"Hello? I'm here to try out for Vocal Adrenaline!"

The entire team turned around in synch, immediately snapping into hive-mind business mode. Jesse, the new lead, stepped forward.

"Miss Corcoran isn't here yet," he told the newcomer. She was a lean black girl, with curly black hair and heavy bags under her eyes that made her look much older than the freshman she obviously was. "When she's hear, though, you can try out. I'm Jesse St. James, the male lead."

"I'm Andrea Cohen," the girl replied, walking to the very front row of seats. She sat gracefully and entwined her fingers, obviously not going anywhere. The team exchanged awkward glances, not ready to let their guard down. Shelby was very selective when it came to new members, and mere mortals could not see the inner workings of the show choir.

"Is there something I can help you with?" Andrea asked patiently. Jesse narrowed his eyes slightly; if she was going to be part of this, she needed to at least kiss some ass before she could talk to them like that, or even show she had some semblance of talent.

"Yeah, you could head to class and come back at lunch," Bryan said, stepping up beside Jesse. "Civilians don't get their own squints, you have no excuse to ditch."

"English, please?" Andrea snapped.

"You don't get some random nerd sent to take your classes for you. You're going to be late, so you'd better go," Giselle translated. Andrea rolled her eyes.

"Please, like I give a crap about missing class. I'm staying." Jesse quietly hoped she made it; if she was talented, she sure did have the right spirit. As inconvenient

There was a collective groan, and instead of going back to catching up amiably, they went off to do things individually. They still sat in a large circle, however, and sometimes whispered quietly to each other.

Jesse ended up sitting between Giselle and Amelia, two fellow sophomores. Giselle was watching YouTube videos on her iPod, and Amelia, ever the intellectual, was hunched over her Nook, her brow furrowed as she read Les Mis. Beside her was Chris, who Jesse decided to talk to quietly.

"So how was your summer, man?" he asked.

"Epic. I made a bunch of cash, and met this super hot bartender biker-chic. I swear, dude, I've never seen so many tats on one body. She makes me whatever drink I want, too, as long as I bring her some grasshopper pie from work. As girly as they are, I'd kill for one of her Mai Tais," he whispered. "What do you think of new girl?"

"I think she'll fit in well, if she's good," he said.

"I feel like she's a bit too forward about what she want," Chris admitted. "I mean, we're never so blunt about it. We're subtle. She doesn't seem to be cut from the same cloth, you know? If she's got the right stuff, I don't want to alienate her. It might be dangerous."

Jesse bit his lip, not having considered that angle. "Good point."

"I know, I'm full of them. Seriously, though, bro, she could be poisonous. We should watch out."

"Yeah," Jesse replied slowly, eyeing Andrea warily. She just stared back blankly, giving him even more pause. "Let's just hope she's one of the 'bad guys'."

Chris laughed and once again resumed talking about his beautiful, inked-up bartender with magical Mai Tais.

-breakbreakbreak-

When Shelby arrived, not yet in coach mode, she was all smiles and welcomes. "Guys, it's so great to see you! I hope you had wonderful summers, and—" she stopped short. "Who are you?" she demanded harshly.

"Andrea Cohen, pleasure to meet you."

"You need to be in class," Shelby replied coldly. "You're not my student. Try out during lunch."

"I won't leave until I get an audition," Andrea replied, eyes blazing. Jesse heard somebody whistle lowly, as if anticipating a showdown. He wouldn't be surprised.

"Look here, _Andrea Cohen,_" Shelby said quietly, her voice the epitome of calm before the storm. "You will not order me around. Who's the director here? I am. Not you. So get out of my auditorium now, or so help me I will make sure you never set foot in here again. Are we clear?"

Andrea nodded sharply before storming out of the auditorium. "See you at lunch, Coach!"

"I like her," Amelia said mildly, pushing her thick-rimmed black glasses up her J shaped nose. "I think she has spunk."

Evan, a junior with an obvious infatuation with Amelia, stepped forward and nodded solemnly. "I do, too. She's the kind of fire Vocal Adrenaline needs." He smiled at Amelia and winked. "I got your back, Ritter."

"Noted," she said wryly. Shelby cleared her throat loudly.

"She seems to be a bit stubborn. I don't need someone who's going to challenge me and make things difficult. I need someone who will do what I say without asking," Shelby said honestly. It might have stung to have her refer to them as followers, but it got them their National title, so they felt no need to complain.

"Okay, guys, let's get down to business," she said, and with a single clap, Vocal Adrenaline got in formation and got down to business.

So, I'm not going to just right about Jesse, I want to focus on individual characters. So who do you want for the next POV? Amelia, Giselle, Andrea, Shelby, Evan, Chris, or Adam? It's totally up to you! Just not Jesse, sorry. He will be the main person, though. It'll be Jesse, OC, Jesse, OC, Jesse. So yeah.

**Ten reviews till the next. I hope you like it. I know a lot of you want my St. Berry streak to continue, but I feel like VA needs a chance to show they have souls. Everyone makes them so… black and white, one-sided. I want depth for them.**

**Cheers! **

**Harlot**


	2. Chapter 2

**You know what I realized, you guys? I kinda hate Rachel now. In the Prom episode, I was like, heck yeah. Especially during Jar of Hearts. Because she was like "Screw you, Finn, you don't get to get me back". Then two episodes (and one Jesse kiss) later, she's back with Finn. Screw her. I hate what Ryan Murphy made her. She used to be SO. COOL. But the Butt Trumpet just haaaad to ruin it. UGH. –rant over- **

**I don't own anything except a laptop and a dream… LOLOL. Ignore the corniness, I've been breathing in chemical cleaner fumes for like an hour, and it's clearly going to my head. **

* * *

><p>Shelby carefully placed her things on the desk near the stage, making sure it was all set meticulously. By the end of the year it would end up a large disarray of paperwork, sheet music, and various coffee-stained memos, as it had for years before. Still, it was always nice to start with some semblance of organization. She had to keep things smooth at the start so they would run smoothly for the rest of the year. Her desk may have been a mess, but she'd be damned if her kids didn't do everything to perfection. Perhaps her need for perfect execution in the numbers distracted her from a perfectly organized desk. Either way, the prior was infinitely more important.<p>

When everything was set to beginning-of-the-year standards, she let out a content sigh and collapsed into the comfortable leather swivel chair she had gotten as a thank-you for leading the kids to victory at Sectionals the year before.

The kids sat in usual formation before her, but as some of the members had gone the graduation route the year prior, there were some gaps to be filled. Shelby pursed her lips and assessed the kids' weaknesses and strengths and put them with partners that would best bring out their strong qualities.

"Amelia, move next to Evan. Megan, you can partner with Adam. Jesse, obviously you move next to Giselle, Elizabeth can be with Aaron… And that only leaves Chris without a partner," she said with a frown. Most of the gaps had been filled, but the empty space next to the oldest member of Vocal Adrenaline was causing Shelby great discomfort. What if she couldn't fill it? What if Chris had to be dropped? So many things could go wrong, even thinking about them gave Shelby a migraine. She rubbed her temples. "Okay, we can just choose one person that auditions at lunch to fill that spot. In the mean time, let's just… Relax. We can't start yet, it'd be all out of sorts. Did you guys have a nice summer?"

The entire club started chattering excitedly over each other, doubling the pounding behind Shelby's eyes. She held up a hand and the club fell silent, much to her relief. "One at a time, please."

"I had a wonderful summer," Emily started, her green eyes dancing with excitement. "I went to Italy. It was so interesting. I saw so many beautiful places, and don't even get me started on Venice!"

"Is it true, what they say about Italian boys?" Giselle asked. Most of the girls seemed to be interested, much to Shelby's annoyance. People said teenage boys were hormonal, but in her opinion, girls were just as bad. She often wondered if her daughter was like that….

But those thoughts were poisonous. It was wrong for her to think about it. She had made the decision to be a surrogate, she had to come to terms with it. It had been fourteen years. It was time for her to let go. Still, some days she couldn't help but wonder what the little Berry was like.

'I have to focus,' she reprimanded. 'That's the past. These kids are what's important now.' Her heart panged slightly.

Emily bit her lip and nodded, and the auditorium was filled with giggling. Some of the more feminist members rolled their eyes and shared loaded looks.

"How fascinating, Emily. Unfortunately, that really isn't appropriate for school. Anybody else want to share?" she asked.

"I went on college tours to California," Jesse said, his eyes far away. "It was so beautiful there. I knew acting was a good career choice; if I get to live in Hollywood, the paparazzi are definitely worth it."

"Like you wouldn't love every bit of attention," Amelia quipped. Jesse smirked.

"Touché."

The rest of the time leading up to lunch was spent with the kids telling summer stories. Shelby mostly sat back and listened fondly; she had missed this. She had to intervene a few times, of course; they may be oddly professional high schoolers, but they were high schoolers nonetheless. They were bound to get inappropriate sometimes.

Finally, lunch rolled around, and a long line of eager Vocal Adrenaline hopefuls had lined up outside the auditorium. Shelby had set up the stage so it was as nerve-wracking as possible- empty, nowhere to sit, nothing to toy with. A single spotlight, the brightest available, shined down center stage.

It was tradition to make it as scary as possible. She needed her kids to be tough. She couldn't have some Nervous Nelly throwing fits before every competition. That would throw them off their game, which was unacceptable.

The first girl to sing had a decent voice, but she stood completely still and her face was expressionless; when asked to do a showface, she had to be explained to multiple times what it is. Even Jesse's sugar-coated smile didn't work as a good explanation, and the girl had to be denied.

The next few were so nervous that they were either scream-singing, or too quiet to hear. Shelby immediately dismissed them. One boy started crying, but it did nothing to sway her. She couldn't have criers in her show choir.

The next boy didn't even make it all the way to the stage; he turned on his heel halfway to his spot and shook his head, muttering under his breath. Shelby was glad to see him go.

There were a few gems that really stood out; Shelby jotted down their names, songs, and general appearance so she would remember them later.

Finally, the stubborn girl from a few hours prior took the stage, a confident smile stretched across her cheeks. "I'm Andrea Cohen, and I'll be singing Amy Winehouse's You Know I'm No Good."

"Okay, begin," Shelby said, her tone dismissive.

The girl took a deep breath, her head dropped for a moment. Then she looked Shelby dead in the eye.

_Meet you downstairs in the bar and hurt_

_Your rolled up sleeves in your skull t-shirt _

_You say, "Why did you do with him today?" _

_And sniffed me out like I was Tanqueray _

_Cause you're my fella, my guy _

_Hand me your Stella and fly _

_By the time I'm out the door _

_You tear men down like Roger Moore_

The club was obviously in awe; they had figured the girl would be all walk and no talk, but her voice held a rough, bluesy quality that would be a great asset.

_I cheated myself,_

_Like I knew I would,_

_I told you I was trouble,_

_You know that I'm no good,_

_Upstairs in bed, with my ex boy,_

_He's in a place, but I can't get joy,_

_Thinking on you in the final throes,_

_This is when my buzzer goes,_

She mostly stayed still, but the small movements she made with her willowy body were graceful enough to hint at dancing skills.

_Run out to meet you, chips and pitta,_

_You say 'when we married",_

_'cause you're not bitter,_

_"There'll be none of him no more,"_

_I cried for you on the kitchen floor,_

_I cheated myself,_

_Like I knew I would,_

_I told you I was trouble,_

_You know that I'm no good,_

Shelby couldn't deny, the girl had a talent that almost kept up with her ego. She wrote down only the name Andrea; she knew she would remember the performance. Still, out of fairness, she had to stop her in the middle of her enchanting song; Andrea was out of time. "Good job. We'll let you know. Next."

The rest of the day's auditions passed in a mediocre blur, and Shelby was glad when the lunch bell rang. Only a few kids were left, and she informed them they could come back tomorrow to get their chance. She wasn't looking forward to it.

"I swear, they suck more and more each year," Chris complained. Shelby pursed her lips to keep from agreeing.

"Some of them were pretty good," Evan offered optimistically. "I liked Andrea a lot. And that little red-headed chick had some pipes on her."

"Yeah, not all hope is lost," Jesse remarked dryly. Shelby sighed and ran her hands through her hair in exasperation.

"I guess you guys can just keep talking. We can't get anything done with someone missing, it's not right…" she mumbled, but they heard her anyway and sat in a big circle, catching up for the rest of the day.

* * *

><p><strong>Jesse <strong>

Jesse dropped his bag by the door and collapsed onto the couch, flicking through the various comedy specials on his DVR. He was pretty upset that they hadn't started working on any numbers yet; Shelby usually worked them to the bone on the first day. But of course, he shouldn't have been surprised. The coach had always been a bit obsessive compulsive, she wouldn't be able to handle uneven numbers.

"How was your first day back?"

Jesse looked up to see his sister Emily standing above him, a slight smile on her too-thin face.

"It was alright, I guess. Shelby didn't have us do anything, we were uneven in numbers," he said, patting the couch next to him. She smiled and sat gladly, her spidery legs stretched out over his lap. "Have you been…. Eating well lately?"*

Emily's face fell and she stared down at her lap. "I was doing really, really well… But Mom called and I kind of fell off the wagon."

"Em…" Jesse whispered sadly. He gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. "Did she talk to Daniel?"

Emily scoffed and shook her head vehemently. "He's having a particularly bad week. You think I would let that bitch talk to him?" She took a deep, shuddering breath and stared up at the ceiling. "It's so unfair that they're on the other side of the world, and they somehow manage to tear us apart just as well as they do while they're here."

Jesse sighed and got up from the couch, heading to check on his brother. "It's what they do best. When does Uncle Adam get home?"

"Five thirty. Be careful when you go in there. He's acting pretty sensitive at the moment," she warned. Her eyes were so haunted it sent a pulse of anger running through his veins; he couldn't believe his parents were such failures.

Jesse nodded and gently pushed open the door open gently, frowning when he saw his brother asleep in his bed, all the lights off and the shutters closed. He shook Daniel's shoulder gently, laughing when the boy started and swiped at him.

"Easy there, I don't bite," he joked, trying to start things out like. His brother just frowned at him.

"Go away, Jesse," he moaned. He laid back down and pulled his comforter over his head.

"Don't you want some sunshine in here?" Jesse asked, ignoring him as he pulled on the string to send the shades flying up, letting in some much-needed light.

"Jesse, get the fuck out of here!" Daniel snapped. Jesse sighed and reset the shades, retreating out of the room slowly.

"How was he?" Emily asked gently as the door closed. Jesse shrugged.

"Same as usual. I thought he was bipolar. Aren't they supposed to be happy sometimes?" he asked in exasperation, sitting back down on the couch.

"He was good a few days ago. He even went for a walk, he said he wanted some fresh air," Emily said wistfully. She poured Jesse a cup of coffee and slid it across the counter. He smiled thankfully.

"When are they coming back?"

"I don't know," she said, glancing at the calendar. "Probably not for a while."

Jesse sighed. "Good."

* * *

><p><strong>*- In Funeral, Jesse revealed that he had a bipolar brother, a bulimic sister, and emotionally abusive parents. I feel like that's really important for character development, and it will be a big factor in this story.<strong>

**I know the last Jesse bit was kind of random, but I'll be delving into the personal lives of a lot of the VA members. I hope you like it- another Jesse chapter next. **

**Review, please! Tell me what you think. I'd really appreciate it :D If not… I'll cry.**

**Cheers! **

**Harlot**


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